Replacing Flotation Foam

[endoracing]

Hi all, I am in the middle of a redoing the majority of my boat and will soon be needing to replace all the flotation foam that was ripped out in the process. Someone mentioned an easy way to save a bit of money would be to buy blocks of closed cell foam to fill most of the space and then pour in the self expanding 2-part foam to fill in/seal those blocks in. Has anyone heard of this or tried it? Seems like a good way to save a decent amount of money, but if it is going to cause problems down the road its probably not worth it.

Searched pretty well and did not find much on foam.. any thoughts are appreciated. I'm sure I will be back with more questions as the rebuild portion progresses.
Thanks!
Jeff

PS. If anyone has not discovered the oscillating saw for cutting fiberglass I highly recommend looking into it. we ripped out pretty much the whole interior in a day. Only a 18' boat but it made short work of it

 

[rickryder]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

Welcome to the Dry Dock!

I used the blue Dow foam board for my hull and it worked out great! Pics are in my resto thread below

 

[sschefer]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

Hi all, I am in the middle of a redoing the majority of my boat and will soon be needing to replace all the flotation foam that was ripped out in the process. Someone mentioned an easy way to save a bit of money would be to buy blocks of closed cell foam to fill most of the space and then pour in the self expanding 2-part foam to fill in/seal those blocks in. Has anyone heard of this or tried it? Seems like a good way to save a decent amount of money, but if it is going to cause problems down the road its probably not worth it.

Searched pretty well and did not find much on foam.. any thoughts are appreciated. I'm sure I will be back with more questions as the rebuild portion progresses.
Thanks!
Jeff

PS. If anyone has not discovered the oscillating saw for cutting fiberglass I highly recommend looking into it. we ripped out pretty much the whole interior in a day. Only a 18' boat but it made short work of it

Just use the foam board and forget the pour in.

 

[sutor623]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

I used this place. The hull that I am restoring (soon will have pics!!) is a 17' ALL fiberglass boat, so it NEEDS the foam to adhere to the hull and the floor for structural purposes. Once I got the hang of it all went well, and floor is solid as a rock. Best price I could find, I did a 17' trihull for just under $100. http://www.uscomposites.com/foam.html

 

[sutor623]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

PS. If anyone has not discovered the oscillating saw for cutting fiberglass I highly recommend looking into it. we ripped out pretty much the whole interior in a day. Only a 18' boat but it made short work of it

And dude you aint kidding!! I have a Fein, one of the first ones made, and it cuts like a DREAM!! Funny thing is how long that the blades last too!

 

[rickryder]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

Post some pics of your project endo.... would love to see what your workin with

 

[endoracing]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

Just gave your thread a look over.. lookin' good! I wish mine was that far along.

I think after reading through some of the foam discussion there I am going to go with the 2-part for any added structural integrity I can get. Also I'm wondering if there will be any squeaking from the sheets rubbing together.

Your chemical test is making me wonder if the 2 part foam will eat away at a normal block of foam as a space filler and cause other issues. At the end of the day the 2-part stuff isnt that crazy expensive either.

Thanks for the reply and keep up the good work Makes me wish I was that meticulous with my boat! Currently looks like this:



Only thing to look forward to is getting this up and running in the boat

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

Your going to have to figure out wether the foam in the boat was used for structural purposes before you just forgo the pour foam. As already stated uscomposites has decent pricing and good service.

Good luck with your project.

 

[sutor623]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

Your chemical test is making me wonder if the 2 part foam will eat away at a normal block of foam as a space filler and cause other issues. At the end of the day the 2-part stuff isnt that crazy expensive either.
View attachment 137683

Yea man pour it up, Good choice!!

 

[endoracing]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

yep, was looking on us composites. I figure for not too much cost I will have the peace of mind that if it is structural it is there

Plus it'll be fun to see how the expanding stuff works

 

[sutor623]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

yep, was looking on us composites. I figure for not too much cost I will have the peace of mind that if it is structural it is there

Plus it'll be fun to see how the expanding stuff works

Dude the stuff is crazy man. Hardest part for me was getting it to meet the floor upon rising, but not push it up either. Should be quite the experience for ya. Oh and get another set of hands. Trust me.......

 

[endoracing]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

Yeah that is my main concern is knowing how much to use. As far as extra hands I have a few pairs willing to help Luckily for me if this boat isn't in the water none of my friends are gonna be on the water. Probably about the only perk of being the only one with a boat!

 

[rickryder]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

I would suggest some limber holes in your stringers and create some passages to them along the sides.... If water gets in you want it to be able to get to the bilge and pumped out.

But your quite aways from foam....... looks like a total gut job..... Hows the transom?

 

[sutor623]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

I would suggest some limber holes in your stringers and create some passages to them along the sides.... If water gets in you want it to be able to get to the bilge and pumped out.

Agreed. I also drilled some relief holes in the wood and then after the foam pops up, and dries you just cut it flush with the floor.

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

Dude the stuff is crazy man. Hardest part for me was getting it to meet the floor upon rising, but not push it up either. Should be quite the experience for ya. Oh and get another set of hands. Trust me.......

Drill 2 inch hole holes in the floor with a hole saw, then after foam has risen and set, cut the foam that has risen through the holes just below the floor and fill with the hole saw plugs you cut out. Then fiberglass them in.

 

[endoracing]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

Yeah I saw how you did yours and it made me start to think harder on it. The PVC pass through makes a lot of sense and then it can get sealed up well to protect the stringers.

 

[endoracing]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

I would suggest some limber holes in your stringers and create some passages to them along the sides.... If water gets in you want it to be able to get to the bilge and pumped out.

But your quite aways from foam....... looks like a total gut job..... Hows the transom?

Transom needs to be redone and I'm struggling between doing it right and getting it done now and doing it in the fall when the season is over. I know what the next few posts will be and I know the right answer but from my core samples and how everything looks I am confident it will be fine for the season. I am going to do the rear 3 feet or so of floor in a way that it can be removed and easily done at a later point.

 

[sutor623]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

Transom needs to be redone and I'm struggling between doing it right and getting it done now and doing it in the fall when the season is over. I know what the next few posts will be and I know the right answer but from my core samples and how everything looks I am confident it will be fine for the season. I am going to do the rear 3 feet or so of floor in a way that it can be removed and easily done at a later point.

Hey man its all a balance between present and future right? Spring is here man, do what you need to do to get on the water and stay afloat! Do all the vitals first, then if you have time or patience start the workup on the non necessary items.

 

[endoracing]

Re: Replacing Flotation Foam

Hey man its all a balance between present and future right? Spring is here man, do what you need to do to get on the water and stay afloat! Do all the vitals first, then if you have time or patience start the workup on the non necessary items.

Agreed. I also just picked up a new tow rig (ecoboost!) which has sliced a nice chunk out of the boat budget. Its worth it every time I hear the turbo's though!